Covid-19 Hasn’t Stopped Ovarian Cancer
With the crazy world we’re living in today of virtual meetings, zoom happy hours, working from home, and constant mask wearing, it’s hard sometimes to think about anything other than when Covid-19 will safely end. But that’s not the case for the thousands of women out there fighting Ovarian Cancer. It’s easy to say “out of sight out of mind”, but here at Be the Difference Foundation it is always top of mind. (more…)
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Survivor Story: Pam Waters
My story begins like most; with my parents and the beliefs they instilled in me as a child. My mother is a chiropractor and with a PhD. in biophysics, my father was an aeronautical engineer. With a PhD. in international business, my father taught me to always question authority because conventional wisdom can be wrong. I became a chiropractor in 1984 and for the next 20 plus years I ran multiple successful clinics as well as trained 100’s of chiropractors at the nearby chiropractic college. During a dinner in the fall of 2002 I began to notice after meals that...
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Survivor Story: Adam Callei
Last month, I had a colonoscopy because of my family history with Colon Cancer, and I am in the preop area and the nurse comes to my bedside and says, “Want to hear something really funny?” Of course, I replied with a yes and she says, “I was looking at your chart here and it says you had a hysterectomy!” I replied with, “I did, I had it all removed because I had Uterine and Ovarian Cancer”. As a transgendered male, there is always sense of pride, relief, and anxiety, when I am put in those situations. Pride because nobody questions my...
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Survivor Story: Michele Payne
My name is Michele. I am a survivor of low grade endometrioid carcinoma. My story started like many others with complaints of bloating, weight gain, feeling very full quickly, excessive bleeding and back pain. My uterus was removed for fibroid tumors in June of 2014. My ovaries were left in. I was relieved and thought all my gym problems are over. A year later in the fall of 2015 I was still having bloating and pain. The pain became so bad that I went to my doctor several times and she ordered an X-ray. That showed my intestines were not emptying...
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Survivor Story: Debra H.
My Story begins with my husband and I trying to conceive a child. We went to see an infertility specialist and was told that I had a tumor on my left ovary and that once removed, the whole process would be easier. I went through that surgery and come out fine and continued with the infertility treatment with no results. I went to another and fertility doctor and upon examination he says, “Do you know your right ovary is missing?”. I told the doctor that it should be my left ovary! My period started getting heavier and heavier and I...
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Survivor Story: Rebecca Gyles-Johnson
My survivor story started a long time ago when I was 15 years old, in 1976. As it was so long ago, and since I was a child, the memories are not crystal clear, and I only know the basics. Of course, it is from a child’s viewpoint too. My symptoms were mood swings and my bloated abdominal area. Also, I would have horrible pains in my abdominal/groin area. I remember many times doubling over in pain. There was one instance that I blacked out. My father made an appointment for me with our family physician. The family physician thought...
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Survivor Story: Heather Franz
My mom noticed that I was getting a protruding belly and she became concerned since none of us had health insurance. She made an appointment for all 3 of us to go to Volunteers in Medicine. I was 26 at the time. The appointments were scheduled for the end of March, but the Lord kept telling her to get me in sooner. I was able to be seen on the 5th but, you’re only able to see the nurse on your first visit. My blood pressure was very high for someone who is 5’ tall and weighed 98 pounds. She...
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Survivor Story: Delia Athey
On February 9th, 2005 I was diagnosed with stage 1C Ovarian Cancer during surgery to remove two ovarian cysts. All the cancer that could be seen was removed. I was fortunate that my symptoms directly led to a diagnosis. I was fortunate that I was referred to a surgeon who knew what to test and look for. I was also fortunate that she had a specialist in the operating room who knew how best to remove the tumor. 7 months later I had completed 4 chemotherapy treatments to catch any unseen cancer and I’ve been in remission ever since. Many...
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Survivor Story: Jill Bach
Tuesday April 10, 2007 I visited my internist complaining of a cough that had lasted approximately six weeks and exhaustion. I imagined that I would be told that I had bronchitis and would be out the door with an antibiotic. He did not hear anything abnormal in my chest but luckily felt that since I had been coughing for so long a chest x-ray would be worthwhile. Ten minutes later his x-ray technician is asking me when I had surgery to remove part of my left lung. He stepped out of the room to get the doctor. Meanwhile, I am sitting in my paper...
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Survivor Story: Julie Shrell
My journey with ovarian cancer began when I was 40. Because my dad’s mom had breast cancer twice, once around age 50 and again at age 82, I was always worried about getting breast cancer. I decided to go to a breast surgeon to discuss my chance of having the same fate as my grandmother. She had me fill out a family history questionnaire and told me I was not at risk. Both of my parents were only children, so we don’t have a large extended family. Eight years later, at age 48, I was diagnosed with stage 3 ovarian...
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Survivor Story: Linda Bezner
In the summer of 2003 I was helping my oldest child get ready to leave for college 850 miles away from home. On and off all summer I would notice these twitches in my stomach, where my ovaries would have been. I had had a complete hysterectomy 10 years prior. I remember commenting to my daughter that I was having sympathy ovulation pains. It didn’t hurt, but I had never had stomach problems before, and I just knew it wasn’t normal. In the fall after returning from college drop off, the twinges continued, and I decided to get it...
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Survivor Story: Lynn Lentscher
Life is a Journey, So Fasten Your Seatbelts. It was November 4, 1998. I saw the freshly starched white coat approach the side of my bed and as he introduced himself as my gynecologist/oncologist, I suspected that life as I knew it would probably never be the same. He said I had Stage 3 Ovarian Cancer and would need 6 months of chemotherapy and that I would be pretty sick and lose my hair. Then I would have a second look surgery with an incision from nose to toes. If more cancer was detected, I would have another type of...
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